---

30 Mar 2004 : Column 1307W—continued

Single Payments

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on gold plating of the standard form for single tax payments. [156506]

Alun Michael: Our policy is to keep administrative burdens to a minimum and to avoid gold plating. Defra and the RPA are working closely on the development of the new Single Farm Payments Scheme and will ensure that application forms contain only the information necessary to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements in line with Government policy on better regulation.

Special Areas of Conservation

Mr. Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects (a) Bolton Fell Moss and (b) Solway Moss to be designated as candidate Special Areas of Conservation. [163642]

Mr. Bradshaw: Public consultation has been completed for both sites but there remain unresolved objections which require further consideration. Discussions are currently taking place with the objectors. The Secretary of State will decide whether to submit these sites to the European Commission, as candidate Special Areas of Conservation, when the discussions are concluded.

Swill Feeding

Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many replies her Department received in response to the consultation document that preceded the ban on swill feeding; and what percentage of respondents favoured a ban. [162497]

Mr. Bradshaw: The final total number of responses, including the late responses, received was 357. Responses were not clear cut as the consultation asked a number of questions but, taking account of all the responses, there were 37 per cent. against the ban, 32 per cent. in favour and 31 per cent. expressing no preference. Those in favour included major organisations representing widespread interests. They included, among others, the British Pig Association, the National Farmers Union, the National Consumer Council, and the Meat and Livestock Commission.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Iraq

11. Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the extent is of British companies' involvement in the reconstruction of Iraq. [164131]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: British companies are playing an important role in the reconstruction process of Iraq. In the recent tranche of contracts worth a total of $5 billion, British companies in joint venture with US companies have won substantial contracts in the Electricity and Public Works and Water sectors, worth in excess of $1.5 billion.

30 Mar 2004 : Column 1308W

My hon. Friend was in Basra and so knows British companies are also active in the banking, ports, construction, telecoms, security, legal services and consultancy sectors.

14. Jim Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Governments of countries neighbouring Iraq about the cross-border movements of terrorist groups. [164134]

Mr. Rammell: We have regular contacts with Iraq's neighbours about cross-border movements of terrorist groups. The Coalition Provisional Authority is currently working on a phased plan to tighten border security, beginning with the Iranian border.

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the distribution of the Iraqi Oil for Food money and accrued interest. [163532]

Mr. Rammell: UN Security Council Resolution 1483 established the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) as a single account to handle all proceeds from the sale of Iraqi oil, all remaining monies from the Oil For Food (OFF) programme, and all unencumbered Iraqi overseas assets. The DFI is used to fund the Iraqi Budget and additional emergency expenditures authorised by the joint Coalition-Iraqi Programme Review Board.

In addition to the $1 billion transferred from OFF accounts to the DFI at its inception, all uncommitted OFF monies were transferred to the DFI following the hand-over of responsibility for ongoing OFF contracts to the Iraqi Ministry of Trade and the Coalition Provisional Authority on 21 November 2003. The accounts of the DFI as of 5 March 2004 show that this transfer amounted to $2,192,314,373.89.

The DFI is an interest-bearing account held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and all interest earned by the account is re-invested. The accounts of the DFI, the Iraqi Budget and minutes of the Program Review Board are available on-line at the CPA website: www.cpa-iraq.org.

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the basic constitutional rules and decision making systems for the Iraqi Transitional National Assembly; and if he will make a statement. [163990]

Mr. Rammell: The principles of the transitional political structures in Iraq, including the Transitional National Assembly are set out in the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), which was signed by the Iraqi Governing Council on 8 March. A copy of the TAL has been placed in the Library of the House. The signing of the TAL was a major step forward for the political process in Iraq.

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the membership of the Iraqi Transitional National Assembly, including the members' ethnicity; and if he will make a statement. [163995]

Mr. Rammell: The Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) was signed by the Iraqi Governing Council on 8 March. The TAL establishes the principles of the

30 Mar 2004 : Column 1309W

transitional political structures and sets out the timetable for the elections processes, including membership of the National Assembly. Article 30 states:

C "The National Assembly shall be elected in accordance with an electoral law and a political parties law. The electoral law shall aim to achieve the goal of having women constitute no less than one quarter of the members of the National Assembly and of having fair representation for all communities in Iraq, including the Turcomans, Chaldo-Assyrians and others."

D "Elections for the National Assembly shall take place by 31 December 2004 if possible and in any case no later than 31 January 2005."

The Iraqis have invited the UN to re-engage in Iraq and assist with the elections processes. We welcome the return to Iraq of the Head of the UN Elections Assistance Division, Carina Perelli, to advise on the establishment of an Independent Elections Commission by May.

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Iraqi Governing Council's proposals to replace the country's civil family laws with Islamic Sharia Law. [164026]

Mr. Rammell: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, Deptford (Joan Ruddock) on 9 March 2004, Official Report, column 1435W.

Governing Council Resolution 137 on family law has been withdrawn by the Governing Council. It has no legal status.

Mr. Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures are being taken by the international bodies involved in the reconstruction of Iraq to protect the interests of the Mandaean religious community. [164255]

Mr. Rammell: The Coalition is working hard with the Iraqis to strengthen the Iraqi security and judiciary sectors to provide law and order and to protect the rights of all Iraqis. The fundamental rights of all Iraqis are laid out in Article 12 of the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), which was agreed by the Iraqi Governing Council on 8 March 2004. A copy of the TAL has been placed in the Library of the House.

Spain

12. Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has had with the new Spanish Government; and if he will make a statement. [164132]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs spoke with Prime Minister-elect Zapatero's principal Foreign Affairs Advisor, Miguel Angel Moratinos, on 15 March to congratulate him on the PSOE's election victory. Officials have also been in contact with members of the government-elect.

Counter-terrorism (EU)

13. Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the measures taken in the EU on the struggle against terrorism. [164133]

30 Mar 2004 : Column 1310W

Mr. MacShane: In the wake of the 11 September attacks, the EU adopted an action plan on counter-terrorism, which last week's European Council updated and extended.

Much of the old action plan had been achieved. A Framework Decision on Terrorism has tightened counter terrorist legislation in those countries which had not previously faced a terrorist threat. A European Arrest Warrant allows quicker extradition from one member state to another. A system has been established collectively to freeze terrorist assets. Last week's Council decided that we need rapidly to complete implementation of the measures already agreed, approved a wide ranging package of measures designed to enhance further our citizens' security, and endorsed the creation of an EU counter-terrorism co-ordinator.

---